Internet Voting Note It seems that the more that people use the Internet the more uses they find for it. Voting is an example. The 2000 Presidential elections dramatized the need for a reliable system that ensures that people can get to the polls and records their votes, and also provides an efficient way to check the tally. To some, Internet voting offers a way to achieve these objectives. To others, Internet voting raises concerns about privacy and the ability of some voters to either access such a system or know how to use it. The Center for the Study of Technology and Society’s Special Focus on Internet Voting reports that: In the blizzard of criticism that followed the Florida election incident, many analysts and critics argued that Internet voting could have prevented many of the election problems. However, they often confused Net voting (which is still not ready for wide deployment) with general electronic voting -- which would have solved the problems without the risks posed by Net voting. The Problem Should voting over the Internet be permitted? How would it work? How might it affect our democracy? Background As other aspects of politics move online, including campaigning, fundraising and news reporting, speculation has increased that elections might be moved online, too. Minor elections, such as votes for positions in clubs and student governments, have been held online for years, but the first official Internet elections for state and national governments were not held until 2000. In the past few years, a number of companies specializing in Internet elections have begun offering their services to election boards. Recognizing that governments will pay significant amounts of money for help operating Internet elections, these companies strongly support online voting. How Does Internet Voting Work? The term “Internet voting� is used loosely to describe very different things. For instance, many informal votes are conducted by e-mail or in online polls. But because the stakes are higher in government elections, the requirements for security are far more stringent. Here are the basic types of Internet voting that would be sufficiently secure for government elections. Electronic voting at traditional polling sites. This form of voting does not actually use the Internet at all, but it is a key first step in the transition to Net voting: simply replace voting machines and paper ballots with computers. Election officials would still be present at voting sites to prevent voter fraud. The key benefit of this type of voting would be an end to the paper ballot problems that plagued the Florida elections in 2000. Although the technology would cost money, voting districts would also save money by not printing paper ballots. Just under 10 percent of Americans already use this type of voting. Internet voting at traditional polling sites. Once sufficient security systems are in place, the computers described above could be connected to the Internet. This would speed the tabulation and reporting of votes. Election officials would remain at the voting sites. Some supporters of Internet voting say this type of balloting undermines a key benefit of the Internet voting -- the
The Council of State Governments
56
